Medical marijuana just got a kick in the pants when a federal bill sponsored by a Republican would attempt to make the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) view all marijuana plants prescribed by doctors be considered as a Schedule II drug under the Controlled Substances Act, which would mean legal weed would be classified similar to painkillers.

Twenty-one states currently allow medical marijuana and more have pending legislation that would allow it. But the odd part about the current law is that at a Federal level marijuana plants are still considered illegal, which presents quite a problem when it comes to states rights and whether or not people should be arrested for legally buying marijuana in states like Colorado, where even recreational marijuana is allowed.

U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith recently created a bill he calls the Legitimate Use of Medicinal Marijuana Act, or LUMMA. While sponsors of marijuana bills have typically been Democrats, Griffith is stepping outside the party lines by sponsoring a medical marijuana federal bill as a Republican:

“It may take some time for people to warm up to it. But it is actually a very conservative bill. It says government should step back and let the doctors and health professionals use a substance in a manner that they would use any other substance for treatment of patients who need help. … My bill is a conservative answer to folks who say, ‘Well, why can’t we use it?'”

At the same time, Mr. Griffith does not support recreational marijuana. Instead, he believes that doctors should have control over whether or not cannabis is prescribed:

“Our doctors are having to sneak around and do something, or ask people to do something, that’s not currently legal, there’s something wrong with that medical system and this is a way we can prevent that. Under a doctor’s care, through proper procedures, I think it’s something we as a society should’ve done long ago. This gives the [Drug Enforcement Administration] the ability to say, this is the way you ought to do it. If we’re going to use marijuana legitimately for medical uses, it ought to be done with the DEA and the [Food and Drug Administration] and doctors going through the proper channels.”

Do you think legal weed should be limited to medical marijuana, or do you cannabis plants should also be made available for recreational usage?